Pamela Anderson adopts a homeless puppy from India

Canadian-born actress and longtime animal rights advocate Pamela Anderson has added another rescued pet to her California pack, taking in a puppy in need from the streets of Mumbai, India.

It was love at first sight for the bombshell Baywatch actress and the little mixed breed Desi – meaning “Indian” – dog. Anderson has named the puppy Pyari, which means “Loved One” in Hindi. Pyari was found abandoned on a Mumbai construction site.

“Anderson was moved by the pitiable conditions of Indian street dogs when she came to India in 2010 as a gust on the TV show Big Boss 4,” PETA Project Coordinator Benazir Suraiya explains. Anderson was a guest on the Indian reality show for three days.

“Later when she got to know that PETA India’s Chief Poorva Joshipura was visiting the U.S., she asked her to bring a homeless pup along,” Suraiya says.

“I’m tickled to be able to give Pyari a loving home,” Anderson says, “Desi dogs are stars.”

Anderson is thrilled with her new best friend and hopes that Indian residents will follow her example by adopting a homeless pet in need. “I already have rescued dogs, and I urge everyone to join me in adopting a homeless dog from their local animal shelter or the streets instead of buying a so-called ‘pedigree,” Anderson told The Times of India.

According to The Hindustan Times, many stars of the Indian film industry, or “Bollywood,” choose to purchase high-priced purebred dogs, and the trend has created a precedent that works against homeless shelter dogs across the country. Bollywood icon Aiswarya Rai Bachchan, for example, owns an expensive imported pedigree Boxer named Sunshine.

Geeta Seshamani, co-founder of the New Delhiite animal rescue organization Friendicoes, is encouraged by Pyari’s adoption and hopes that it will start a rescue dog revolution. “Delhiites have an aversion for Indian puppies,” Seshamani explains. “Anderson might help such people get rid of their bias.”